In the middle of Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries gathered somewhere they have been only a handful of times. They are, after all, just a second-year franchise.
But on Saturday night they came together to collect their trophy as WNBA champions. Kaila Charles embraced Tiffany Hayes as they jumped up and down. Kayla Thornton screamed towards the ceiling.
Teams are not supposed to do this so fast, but the Valkyries did.
Gabby Williams scored 30 points, most of them coming in a second-half tear in which she carried the Valkyries to a 68-63 win over the Atlanta Dream in Game 7 of the WNBA finals.
It is the first championship in franchise history for the Valkyries, who began play just two seasons ago. They beat Dallas in the first round and swept the defending champion Las Vegas Aces to reach the finals before prevailing in an intense, seven-game slugfest against Atlanta.
Best-of-seven series. All times US Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
Sat 17 Oct Game 1: Golden State 68, Atlanta 64
Mon 19 Oct Game 2: Atlanta 79, Golden State 65
Wed 21 Oct Game 3: Atlanta 97, Golden State 71
Sat 24 Oct Game 4: Golden State 67, Atlanta 62
Mon 26 Oct Game 5: Golden State 64, Atlanta 55
Thu 29 Oct Game 6: Atlanta 80, Golden State 69
Sat 31 Oct Game 7: Golden State 68, Atlanta 63
In the US, the series will air on NBC, USA Network and CNBC, with all games streaming on Peacock. In the UK, it will be carried by Sky Sports. In Australia, fans can watch through WNBA League Pass, with selected coverage also available through ESPN.
It was also the first-ever Game 7 in WNBA history. The league expanded the finals to a best-of-seven format last year, but Las Vegas swept Phoenix in four games.
The Valkyries led 14-12 after the first quarter on Saturday, thanks in large part to an 8-0 run to open the game. Golden State recorded five blocks before the Dream made their first field goal, but Atlanta responded with a 7-0 run to briefly take the lead.
The second quarter, though, was a reversal of the first. Golden State did not make a field goal until three minutes remained in the period, while the Dream went on a 9-0 run. The Valkyries had missed their first 10 three-point attempts before Thornton finally connected from beyond the arc in the second.
After Golden State had struggled from long range all game, Williams hit three consecutive three-pointers in the third quarter to cut Atlanta’s lead to two. The Valkyries led 45-44 entering the fourth, largely thanks to Williams’s 15 points in the period.
Allisha Gray hit a mid-range jumper to tie the score at 53 with 4min 52sec remaining, but the Valkyries retook the lead a minute and a half later on a Williams free throw.
From there, the teams traded blows in a finish that mirrored the back-and-forth nature of the series.
Williams gave Golden State a 60-57 lead with 2min 14sec remaining on a contested three-pointer with two seconds left on the shot clock, and the Dream never recovered.
Golden State won Games 1, 4 and 5 before clinching the series in Game 7 on their home court. The Valkyries entered the postseason as the No 2 seed and enjoyed home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
Hayes scored 11 points en route to her first WNBA title at the age of 37, while point guard Veronica Burton added 10 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. For Atlanta, Jordin Canada scored 18 points, Gray added 16 and Angel Reese was held to eight points and 12 rebounds.
